


❝ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴅᴇᴘᴛʜs ᴏғ ᴛʜɪs ᴇᴛᴇʀɴᴀʟ ᴅʀᴇᴀᴍ ❞

by lesirain



Category: TOMORROW X TOGETHER | TXT (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, No Spoilers, beomgyu is now part of the hyung line', im having too much fun with the tags, kai is kai, nevermind, suffer, taehyun is confused, yeonjun is nice older brother
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-19
Updated: 2020-06-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:27:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24797653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lesirain/pseuds/lesirain
Summary: 〘 ready player one ? 〙01010011 01100001 01110110 01100101 00100000 01101101 01100101«stats:»“name”                              kang taehyun{age}                 18 years old (february 5th, 2002)^Height^                     177 cm (5’10″)「Weight」           55 kg (121 lbs)/Blood Type/             A[Nationality]                     Korean〘ready? world opens in.......〙
Kudos: 10





	1. taehyun wakes up to a new day

**Author's Note:**

> oh boy, another one.
> 
> the reason why i'm posting so many is because i've written them all already and am transferring everything. i swear i'm not that fast.
> 
> this one is inspired by 'Drama'   
> how?  
> don't ask please. i don't even know...

It's too calm. Taehyun figures that it should be early in the morning, as he doesn't hear the other members scrambling to get dressed unless they want to get scolded by Soobin. So he turns to the other side of the bed and continues to sleep. 

Yeonjun shakes him up, pulling on the covers and tugging his pillow. 

' Yah! Beomgyu! Wake Huening up! We're going to be late!' 

Only then does Taehyun get up, mainly because when Beomgyu climbs down the ladder, it shakes the entire double-decker bed. He frowns. 

_wait, beomgyu sleeps in the closet, it should be soobin above him?_

And he's also surprised that Beomgyu would wake up so willingly, he was always one of the late sleepers like Kai.

Taehyun reaches under the pillow for his phone, but it's not there? He turns the bed upside down to look for it, but it's really not there? 

' Hyung? Have you seen my phone?' He asks Yeonjun who's busy cleaning away several packets of empty chocolate milk. 

' It's on the bedside table Tae, you've always put it there?' Yeonjun turns to pick up the phone and hands it to Tae. 

_but what about soobin-hyung's contact lens? It's where he put it?_

But he doesn't comment on it, because he senses that Yeonjun's about to lose his patience if he doesn't get up any faster. 

Tae doesn't like the feeling that's settled in his gut. 

The table is set for 4 people. He sees the same sandwiches Yeonjun prepares for them everyday along with their respective drinks : Water for Yeonjun, milk for Kai, orange juice for him and chocolate milk for Beomgyu? 

_beom's changed his taste? He normally opts for water?_

A figure with purple hair is sitting at his seat, hunched over his breakfast. Taehyun picks up his orange juice and moves over. ' Hyung, get out, that's my seat.' 

'Hyung? You're older than me?' 

'Ning Ning? When did you have purple hair?' 

'Hyung, who calls me Ning Ning nowadays? That was my nickname when I was 5? And you prefer to sit there?' Kai points at three chairs which are adjusted higher that Kai's.

'You said only the hyungs can sit there, remember? Then when Beomgyu-hyung complained that I was growing too tall, you raised the seats so that you guys would be taller and you could 'look down on me'. 

Before Taehyun can deny doing such a thing because Soobin is the tallest not Kai, Beomgyu enters the kitchen. He opens the fridge and Taehyun glimpses that it's stocked to the brim with chocolate milk. 

' Hyung, since when do you like chocolate milk?' Taehyun comments, trying to figure out when Beomgyu's obsession with chocolate milk began.

'Huh? What do you mean? I always introduce myself as Chocolate-gyu! So you don't pay attention to me? I'm your hyung!!'

Beomgyu reaches for Taehyun's ear and he ducks down to avoid him. The last member of the group enters the room and raises his eyebrows at Beomgyu, who sheepishly retracts his hand.

' Hurry up! We've got practice at 7! Then Taehyun, Beomgyu you've got singing at 11. Kai, you're with me in dance, we need to work on the dance break.' 

Yeonjun joins them at the table, the last member to arrive. The other members nod at the impromptu briefing. 

' What about Soobin-hyung?' Taehyun pipes up, and the other members turn to look at him. 

'Huh?' Yeonjun is the first to answer. ' Who's soobin?'


	2. what's going on...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taehyun scours the entirety of Seoul for one Choi Soobin.

〘objective: find one_ choi_soobin level of difficulty:1 ready? let's begin〙 

The words flash in front of him, like something out of a sci-fi movie. 

he collapses. 

❝5.....4.....3.....2.....1.............. let's review your memories! ❞ 

_what's happening? I've disappeared?!_

~~'choi soobin! where are you?'~~

~~'i don't know tae, but there are so many reflections of me!'~~

~~' we're in a maze of mirrors hyung, of course there's mirrors.'~~

~~'but this one tae, it's broken. there's a lot of glass let me clean it up......'~~

~~'hyung, no, you could get cut!'~~

~~'hyung? are you there?'~~

~~'hyung? it's not funny, come back.'~~

he wakes up. he's gasping for air-

_it feels so real whats going on i—_

he looks up. 

〘objective: find one_ choi_soobin level of difficulty:1 ready? let's begin〙

The words are still there. Its looks cool, but he knows it's not normal to have floating words in front of him.So he shakes his head to get rid of it , but the words follow his head. No matter how hard he shakes, it doesn't go away. 

' You'll get a headache if you shake it like that.' Yeonjun, holds out a glass of water and some chocolate. Taehyun starts— he sees words floating above Yeonjun's head. 

〘Side Character One: Choi Yeonjun: Leader of Tomorrow by Together〙

'Here, I got something sweet for you, don't tell on me, Beomgyu will take it away.' Taehyun stares at him when he helps Taehyun get up. 

'You look unwell, get some sleep okay? I'll explain to our managers. Just focus on getting well.'. 

Taehyun nods, sniffing a little, and with a pat, Yeonjun leaves him alone. He feels a little guilty to being faking sick, but he has higher priorities first. He reaches forward to touch the floating words. The words rearrange. 

［stats. mission. rewards.］

[I]like a game 

Taehyun presses on the stats button. General information about him is displayed, and he feels a bit weird to see every detail about him spread out in front for him. He shudders.

He moves on to the next button. Mission. 

〘welcome player kang taehyun〙→ the objective of the game is to find one_choi_soobin 

There's nothing else. It doesn't help Taehyun at all.

Taehyun turns to the internet. He googles Tomorrow by Together first, hoping that it's all a joke. 

**[Bighit's second boy group Tomorrow by Together is back with The Dream Chapter: Eternity ; members discuss future plans and goals]**

is the first headline he sees. 

_It's still called Eternity_

Taehyun breathes in relief, until he remembers that the album titles were set by Bighit, not the members. He switches to the video tab and clicks on the Can't you see me music video. The familiar bighit logo starts playing. The video starts to run, the familiar Bighit logo appearing. 

The video is similar, but Soobin is missing. There's no cut of him sitting on the porch nor does he tip the glass over. However, in this video, Kai's the one to take Soobin's place, replicating the actions. Only does he realise something. 

To make up for Soobin's absence, the universe has adjusted quite a bit. Yeonjun's more responsible now, as he's the leader, but Taehyun mourns the fact that his eldest hyung may never be able to show his 'fake maknae' side to the world. 

And Beomgyu's matured too, probably because he doesn't have to prove that he belongs to the hyung line— he is one already. Soobin's almond milk addiction has clearly passed on to Beomgyu, only difference is that it's chocolate instead. 

The only one that doesn't seem affected is Kai, and although he sports purple hair, the only thing that's changed is that he's taken on more lines to make up for Soobin. It's probably why this Kai's singing is more striking— he's had a lot of practice.

❝ can't you see me ?❞

❛like on that magical day say, believe me ❜

Kai doesn't sing the verse. Beomgyu and Yeonjun does, harmonizing perfectly, Taehyun notes, and files it away for future reference. It's eerie that the song and choreography was clearly made for four, Soobin's parts cut clean. But it works just as well. This just proves that Bighit can make anything work. 

Taehyun closes the tab, and opens a new one, typing 'Choi Soobin'. Nothing remotely similar to his leader comes out, only pictures of random people and a bunch of Facebook profiles. He tries different variations, like 'Soobin bighit' or ' soobin ansan' but still nothing. 

_Proves that Soobin didn't go into showbiz_

Taehyun's heart clenches. In an attempt to calm himself down, he starts listing out what he knows and what he needs to find out  
Taehyun writes it down in a notebook. He's slightly relieved that it would be easier to approach him, but harder to find. 

_What did he say he wanted to become?_

Taehyun lists down the several jobs that Soobin might have taken.Before long, he's planned a list of other jobs that Soobin-hyung might have chosen. 

Baker is at the top of his list. Soobin-hyung cannot live without bread. That he is 100% confident about. 

Taehyun swipes his keys and heads out, careful to not get seen by any of the BigHit staff. A quick search of all the nearest bakeries sends him scrambling off to the closest one. Vaguely, he remembers Huening Kai rambling about how the egg tarts at this particular bakery taste like heaven to him.

He doesn't have time to ponder- the bakery's entrance looms in front. Taehyun steps in and scans the crowd for his hyung. Soobin's not there. 

_Of course, this is the first bakery you've visited_

' Are you ready to order?' The cashier turns to him. 

' Ah? No, actually I'm looking for someone. His name is Soobin and he's only a few years older than me? He's really, really tall and looks like a bunny, and he likes bread.' 

He looks at the cashier desperately. 

' No, I'm sorry, I haven't seen your Soobin.' 

The cashier squints, and it hits sharply that he's still an idol here, and to be looking for someone out in the streets is literally waiting for a scandal to happen. He nods, thanking the cashier and makes a quick dash for the exit. 

_one down, thousands more to go. ___

__Taehyun opts to drop by the dollar store, and finds a hat and sunglasses to obscure his face. Last thing he needs is for paparazzi to spot him. Sadly, the only things he brought with him was his wallet and phone and they would be no help if someone spotted him._ _

___I look crazy_ _ _

__He thinks, as he tucks his hair underneath the cap. Satisfied, he turns on his phone to look for his next destination._ _

__

__

__+x+_ _

__It's 5pm already, and he lingering some where in the outskirts of Seoul. Midway through his search, he realizes that_ _

__1\. He should have started on the outside then worked his way into Seoul so at least he would end up somewhere near BigHit._ _

__2\. Soobin might not even be in Seoul, he might be in Ansan._ _

__3\. Even worse, he might not be a baker._ _

__

__Out of the three, the third one might seem the most possible. But he is Kang Taehyun, and he is almost never wrong. If he thinks that Soobin-hyung is a baker, then he is._ _

__At least if Soobin-hyung isn't working in a bakery, his sweet tooth would still lead him to a bakery. With this thought, he is motivated, and walks faster to the next bakery._ _

__Fate seems to hate him, because at the end, Taehyun still doesn't manage to find Soobin._ _

__The rational part of him tells him that it's not possible to find someone in Seoul in one day._ _

__But the other part of him that makes him feel (ew) is slightly disappointed because he thought that there would be a 'connection' that would miraculously find Soobin._ _


	3. rain, rain [go away]

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the universe hates him. he doesn't care.

He's running out of time. Taehyun knows he can't keep faking sick. Huening Kai's caught on already, and although he thinks that Taehyun's just exhausted, it's only a matter of time before the rest catches on. 

So Taehyun clasps his hands together, wishing that somehow, he'd find Soobin. Checking the mission stats doesn't help at all, as nothing else is given other than the fact that he has to find Soobin. 

Taehyun's phone buzzes-Yeonjun's calling him. 

'Hyung?' he tries to make his voice as raspy as possible to feign sick.

You're not in your bed.' Yeonjun cuts to the point. 

If he was a video game character, Taehyun is sure that the words 〘game over〙would appear. 

' Hyung? Do you trust me?' Tae rushes, and a very confused Yeonjun says 'yes'. 

' Then I'll be back before dinner. Trust me.' Taehyun hangs up. 

Anxiety is building up, since it's almost the end of day 2 and still no Soobin. 

It seems like the universe really despises him, because the sky opens up and begins to rain. Taehyun swears in his head, as he runs to the nearest shelter, some shop that's about to close. 

'Hey, actually, we're about to close?' a voice rings out. 

' I'll buy something, 'Taehyun doesn't notice the shopkeeper, too busy wringing water from his jacket. He looks up. 

Standing there clad in a beige apron is Soobin. He runs over immediately, hugging Soobin. 

'Uh......' 

' Sorry, hyung, you have no idea that I've been looking for you for two days already, I was going insane, Binnie-hyung. Believe me.' 

Taehyun unwraps his arms from a very confused Soobin, who doesn't move at all.

' Aren't you Tomorrow By Together's Kang Taehyun? Oh my God.' Soobin's voice shoots up as he hides behind his hands.

_He doesn't remember?_

Taehyun blinks. Of course. So he moves Soobin over to the couch and tells him everything.


	4. let's be tomorrow [together]

'So you're saying that you're from a different world and in that one I'm the leader of TXT? ' Soobin doesn't believe him.

' Yes. You want proof? You like bread, more than anything, even Yeonjun.' Taehyun relishes the panicked look on Soobin's face. To think the other him would chose bread over the fourth gen it boy Choi Yeonjun. 

'Second, you have really stretchy skin?' 

'Third. Almond milk. Nuff said.' Taehyun lists the three things that make Soobin Soobin. Soobin nods, and they hit it off easily.

At some point, Soobin brings out some leftover pastries for them to snack on. They're sharing stories when Taehyun gets a call. It's Huening Kai. 

' Hyung? Where are you, manager-nim found out that you're not in the dorm, me and the hyungs are coming to get you before the police comes for you!' 

_oh no._

Taehyun quickly sends the address, along with a 'be careful don't crash the car' for Yeonjun. 

Soobin leans over to read the message. 

' Yeonjun-ssi can drive?' 

' No. I'm just hoping that they make it here alive.' 

' Ah... ' 

'This is why we need you, you're the only one with a braincell other than me.' 

A few minutes later, a van swerves into the parking lot near the bakery, and Beomgyu stumbles out, and falls into Soobin's arms. 

' Are you alright?' Soobin asks, concerned, both hands moving to support him. 

'Never gonna let Hyung drive again.' he forces out. Kai is next to get out of the car, and he goes to hug Taehyun, proclaiming that cars and Yeonjun should never go hand in hand. 

' Hey! Didn't you work at that bakery near BigHit?' Kai turns his head to Soobin.Apparently, Kai recognizes him. Taehyun gapes- it would save so much work if he'd asked Kai.

'Yes, then I quit to open this one,' Soobin answers, waving his hand to his bakery. 

'Let's go in first. Before anyone spots us.' Leader Yeonjun beckons and they follow him. 

+x+ 

The five of them sit, facing each other, but not saying anything. 

' I'll go get something for you guys?' Soobin nearly trips over Beomgyu in order to escape the awkward situation. 

After he leaves the other members turn to Taehyun. 

' Who is he?' Yeonjun isn't really angry, just curious. He can't seem to recall seeing this Soobin person. But at the same time, he finds him familiar. 

'Look-' 

' I'm back!' Soobin holds two trays in his hand, setting them down. The trays are covered in all sorts of pastries, and Huening reaches out to take an egg tart while Beomgyu chooses a croissant.

' Thank you Soobinie-hyung!' the two of them chorus, since they've already grown fondly of the giant bunny. Soobin freezes. 

_Of course he'd remember our nickname-_

'Gyu? Ning Ning? Jun? I... I remember now.' He takes a step back, to survey his members. Taehyun looks into Soobin's eyes, who blinks twice and gasps. 

' I remember now,' Soobin smiles, and hugs Taehyun. 

'Thank you.' he whispers in Tae's ear. 

〘objective complete! congratulations. 〙 

〘+1 choi_soobin 〙

〘+100exp〙 

〘round 2: beginning in .......3 ......2........1〙

**Author's Note:**

> Additional notes: I've tried to make this as cannon as possible, so I've included some tidbits. See if you can spot them. 
> 
> 1\. Bread > Yeonjun [That ONE DREAM episode where TXT gets alone time in America] 
> 
> 2\. Huening Kai's Egg Tarts [in this au Soobin's the one works at the bakery.]


End file.
